We survived week one.

Posted by Mommy

Week one of delayed intensification is behind us. It was not a pleasant week at all. The new chemo, which looks like red kool aid takes all the energy out of CJ; and the steroids make you wonder if they do more harm than good. The steroids not only effect CJ’s moods and eating habits, but just make his poor little body hurt. He wasn’t as hungry this week as he was the first time we were on them, but he was only on them for a week. They do one good thing and that is make CJ’s ANC go up. It was 2700 at the clinic today which is more than it has been since he has been diagnosed. That means we can get out and go places, but when your body hurts and everything makes you mad it is best to stay close to home.

Last week we had two doctor’s visits on Monday for chemo and a sleepy test, then on Thursday for more mean pig shots, or Peg shots. The Peg shots were very hard on CJ this time; thank God they were the last ones he gets. He cried from the time we left the clinic until the shots were done, about an hour and a half. All he would say is he wants to go home now. Someone from child life came in to try to cheer CJ up with toys and to play, but he wouldn’t talk to her and barely looked at the toys she brought. After the shots were done he finally stopped crying even though we had to wait another hour before we got to go home, just to make sure he didn’t have a reaction to them. His legs were sore from the shots this time, and they usually don’t bother him.

We got to get out of the house a little this past week. CJ visited his dad, and went to a Yard Sale with his Mama Amy. He also got to visit Pap’s Chris and ride a horse around the barn yard. I am not sure who had a better time CJ or baby brother Hunter.

This week CJ is off the steroids but got more of the kool aid chemo. At the clinic today I was having flash backs of the first month of treatment. CJ was not feeling very good, which makes him clingy, and emotional. Everything from getting his blood pressure to getting his port accessed was a fight. I was hoping we were over this part but the steroids bring out the worst in CJ. The clinic being extra slow today didn’t help. We were there for three hours, which made CJ very impatient. When the doctor came in to talk to us, two hours into the visit, CJ asked her if they forgot about him or if they are just slow pokes today. All I could say is he has been on steroids for a week. We are hoping CJ will feel better this week being off the steroids, but his counts are likely to come back down without them.